


Blighted Happiness

by MissMyMy



Category: Trolls (2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Depression, Eventual Romance, F/M, Flashbacks, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, Mother-Daughter Relationship, Other, Survivor Guilt, lost loved one(s)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-05
Updated: 2019-04-03
Packaged: 2019-05-02 10:49:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14543097
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissMyMy/pseuds/MissMyMy
Summary: An AU where the trolls escape Bergen Town, but Poppy is instead raised by her mother. Will eventually go into the plot of the movie.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is a fanfiction that I've been going back and forth on for a while now. This is experimental, a project if you will, so I may change things depending on how well this goes. The title is not exempt from that.

Inside the large, pink royal pod of the Troll Tree, two trolls were getting ready for their day. Humming to herself, the pink female troll stood in front of her basin and brushed her teeth quickly, then proceeded to brush the tangles out of her tall yellow hair. After that, she took a few items from her wooden nightstand and placed them inside of her hair.

“Leaving already, Daffodil?” the orange male troll asked.

She smiled, turning to her approaching husband. He was getting his own hair together, trying to tuck the dark pink locks inside of his leaf crown.

“I have to Peppy, I promised Rosiepuff,” Daffodil said. She looked over at the sky blue crib on the other side of the room and inside could make out a tiny pink bundle with a dark pink tuft of hair that was lying down on a blanket.

“Poppy’s still asleep?” she asked.

Peppy nodded, finally getting his hair in order. “Don't wake her up, I'll take her today.”

“Are you sure?” she asked as she tied the green sash on her cream dress.

“It's no trouble, I don’t have to leave until noon,” he reassured.

His wife gave him an appreciative smile, then put on her own leaf crown.

“How do I look?” she asked, facing him completely.

“Beautiful,” he said taking her hand and twirling her around. She giggled, then threw her arms around him.

“How do I look?” he asked. Daffodil looked him over, reached up and straightened his crown.

“Perfect,” she mused. Peppy smiled and kissed her on the lips. She nearly laughed at the tickly feeling of his mustache against her skin. When they separated, she gave him an eskimo kiss.

“I'll see you this afternoon,” she said, “Give Poppy a kiss for me.”

“Will do Dilly,” he said as she pulled away and left the pod.

Daffodil walked along the branches of the Troll Tree humming to herself once again. Daffodil was a 30 year old pink troll, with a light pink nose, blue eyes, and bright yellow hair that resembled the tube of a daffodil flower. She was the wife of King Peppy, the brave and selfless leader of the trolls. He was also a loving husband and an excellent father to their beautiful baby girl Poppy. Queen Daffodil felt so blessed to have him and Poppy.

When she made it to the learning space pod, she saw Rosiepuff, an older troll with purple skin and turquoise hair pulled up into a bun who was holding about five little ones. They giggled in her arms as she appeared to be be tickling them. Daffodil smiled at the endearing sight before her eyes wandered downward. Patiently sitting cross legged on the floor, gazing up affectionately at Rosiepuff was her grandson Branch, who was teal with royal blue hair. His ears twitched as he heard her walk into the pod. He turned to her and gave her a big smile.

“Good morning Queen Daffodil!” he greeted.

This got the attention of Rosiepuff and the young trolls. At that moment, her hug time bracelet went off, along with all of the others in the room. The children ran to her, greeting her with a big group hug, except for Branch, who jumped up into his grandma’s awaiting arms. The queen hugged them all back the best that she could.

“Alright little ones, it's time to get started,” Rosiepuff said, sitting Branch down next to her. All the trollings sat in a circle giving Rosiepuff and Queen Daffodil their full attention. Rosiepuff smiled at Daffodil in appreciation before speaking.

“Okay, does anyone know what we're learning today?” she asked.

“Tap dancing!”

“Harmonizing!”

“Pyrotechnics!”

At that last one, they all turned to Cooper, a fuzzy, giraffe-like, quadruped trolling with pink and red fur and yarn-like blue hair.

“What?” he asked.

The trolls stared at him in confusion, save for Branch, who looked mildly interested. After a few moments, Rosiepuff continued.

“Actually, today we’re going to learn how to scrapbook.” The kids all cheered as Daffodil took the art supplies out of her hair and passed them out.

The scrapbooking lesson went as well as expected. They all did pretty good for their first tries and they had such adorable, proud looks on their faces. The entire class laughed when Cooper somehow managed to eat an entire glue stick. It wasn’t toxic, but Daffodil sent him to Dr. Plum’s pod just to be on the safe side.

Hours later, Daffodil finally headed back home, knowing that Peppy would be elsewhere with their daughter. After helping Rosiepuff, she got caught up in some other errands, but she didn’t mind as it kept her busy. She exchanged hellos with the trolls who passed her, loving how their faces brightened up.

“Good afternoon Queen Daffodil,” they said. Honestly, she preferred to just be called Daffodil. It rolls off the tongue much easier. Be that as it may, she still appreciated the respect. Daffodil let her mind wander back to the children’s scrapbooking lesson that morning. The queen was sure that they would all grow to be sweet, caring trolls. Unfortunately, there was something that was about to spoil her happy thoughts.

Not too far behind her, she heard a couple of trolls whispering to each other, fretting over Trollstice. The worry filled comments sent a chill up her spine, tainting her pleasant mood. The Troll Tree was in the center of Bergen Town, where large, dull colored beings were the population. Trollstice was an annual Bergen holiday set just the day after tomorrow. On that day, the bergen named Chef will collect many of the trolls from the tree and serve them to the citizens of Bergen Town.

Daffodil had lived most of her life trapped in Bergen Town and had heard the stories of how Bergens were so naturally miserable that the only way they could feel happiness even for a little while was to eat a troll, as trolls are naturally happy creatures.

Just the thought of any living thing being eaten, sickened Daffodil to her stomach. It made her feel things that she didn’t like feeling and brought back memories that she preferred to keep buried. So, she instead she chose to ignore them and tried to focus on the positive things as she always had. However, there were also thoughts that accused her of forcing herself into a false sense of security. Those had been harder to suppress.

A sense of paranoia arose in her as it seemed for a moment that her bangs weren’t as bright as usual. _No, not now_. Daffodil stopped walking, checked to make sure that no one was near her, then took a few deep breaths to calm herself before checking her hair again. After confirming that the color was normal, she continued on her way home, mentally berating herself in the process. She started thinking about her discussion with him the other week.

Her husband told her that this was going to be the year that they would escape. He explained the plan to her and it was clear to her that he had thought it through. Although it was perilous, she had absolute faith in him to keep them safe. Peppy was dedicated and did whatever he could for his people. It was one of the many things that she loved about him. When she finally made it back to her pod, she was met by a full clothesline.

“Peppy,” she murmured sweetly. She was concerned that she wouldn't get to do the laundry before the afternoon came. And yet, here it was all set up. After determining that the clothes were dry, she went to get the basket. As she pulled the clothes from the line and folded them, she started to whistle the tune of a song she loved then started singing shortly after.

_Here's a little song I wrote_  
_You might want to sing it note for note_  
_Don't worry, be happy_  
_In every life we have some trouble_  
_When you worry you make it double_  
_Don't worry, be happy_  
_Don’t worry, be happy_

_Ooh, ooh ooh ooh oo-ooh ooh oo-ooh ooh ooh oo-ooh_  
_(Don't worry)_  
_Ooh oo-ooh ooh ooh oo-ooh_  
_(Be happy)_  
_Ooh oo-ooh oo-ooh_  
_(Don't worry, be happy)_  
_Ooh, ooh ooh ooh oo-ooh ooh oo-ooh ooh ooh oo-ooh_  
_(Don't worry)_  
_Ooh oo-ooh ooh ooh oo-ooh_  
_(Be happy)_  
_Ooh oo-ooh oo-ooh_  
_(Don't worry, be happy)_

Feeling the rhythm coursing through her, she took down the last blanket and twirled around with it a few times.

_Ain't got no place to lay your head_  
_Somebody came and took your bed_  
_Don't worry, be happy_  
_The landlord say your rent is late_  
_He may have to litigate_  
_Don't worry, be happy_  
_(Look at me I'm happy)_

She moved away from the basket of clothes and swayed from side to side with her eyes closed. Daffodil was now belting out the song in her strong voice.

_Ooh, ooh ooh ooh oo-ooh ooh oo-ooh ooh ooh oo-ooh_  
_(Don't worry)_  
_Ooh oo-ooh ooh ooh oo-ooh_  
_(Be Happy)_  
_Ooh oo-ooh oo-ooh_

Daffodil was so lost in her own little world that she didn’t notice an approaching figure. It wasn’t until she suddenly felt something smothering her body that her eyes shot open. A giant purple hand with warts was wrapped around her and lifting her off the surface. Her heart nearly jumped out of her chest when she saw the eyes of Chef bore into her. She opened her mouth to scream, but nothing came out. Before she knew it, she was tossed into Chef’s fanny pack.

After hitting the bottom of the pack, she looked up just in time to see the zipper close, shutting out most of the light. As Chef started walking, Daffodil sat up and tried to process what just happened. Chef just took her from her home in broad daylight. What warranted her to do such a thing? She only gathered the trolls the morning of Trollstice and with her staff. The pink troll reached for the zipper that was just barely open trying to open it from the inside, but the constant moving made it difficult. Her breathing grew frantic as she continued her failed efforts. The queen stopped when she heard a clear, sweet voice singing. She put her ear to the zipper opening to hear more clearly.

And I need you now tonight  
And I need you more than ever  
And if you only hold me tight  
We'll be holding on forever

She frowned with concern as it sounded like the voice was getting closer. Among the singing she heard another voice.

“Branch! Watch out!”

Her eyes widened at the familiarity. Was that Rosiepuff? Looking through the small opening, she squinted upward to see that it was indeed Rosiepuff and she was running towards her grandson Branch who was too caught up in his singing to notice that Chef was about to grab him. Daffodil finally found her voice.

“Branch! Look out behind you!” she yelled.

The young troll finally turned around just when Chef’s hand was about to enclose on him. In the blink of an eye, Rosiepuff pushed Branch out of the way, getting herself caught in the process. Rosiepuff let out a terrified yell as Chef walked away and Branch was heard crying, “Grandma!” Daffodil’s heart ached at the fright in the child’s voice. The zipper opened, forcing her to move away from it as Rosiepuff was thrown in. Daffodil helped Rosiepuff sit up and the latter gave her a shocked look.

“Daffodil? She took you too?”

“Yes and I have no idea why,” she said close to freaking out.

Rosiepuff must’ve noticed because she grabbed her hands and gently squeezed them. Daffodil took a few breaths to calm herself once again.

“You saved Branch,” she said with fear and admiration.

“She was going to take him,” Rosiepuff shut her eyes to prevent tears, “I wasn’t going to let her.”

Involuntarily, the image of little Branch frantically squirming in Chef’s grasp came to her mind. How could anyone think of harming a child? She shook the unpleasant thought from her mind and wrapped Rosiepuff in a comforting embrace which she returned. The two stayed like that for the remainder of the way not aware that three figures down below saw the entire thing.

What appeared to be a fallen leaf changed into a mass of green hair that uncovered the three trolls. They were a lime green glitter troll with light green hair named Diamond, an orange troll with purple hair named Tandy, and her daughter Mandy who was yellow with hot pink hair. When they saw Chef, they hid and could only watch what had happened.

“We have to tell King Peppy right away,” Tandy said while protectively tightening her grip on Mandy. Diamond absently nodded as she had been watching Branch who was still on the ground, staring at it with an empty, downcast expression. His hair had gone from blue to black, his skin had turned grey, and his ears drooped in utter despair. It was simply devastating to witness, especially for such a young troll.

“You go ahead. I’m going to take Branch to Dr. Plum.”

“Alright,” Tandy responded. With that they both went their separate ways.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, that's the first chapter. Hopefully it won't take too long for me to finish the second chapter. Thanks for reading.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well this took me much longer than I intended it to take. However this was a very difficult chapter for me to write for multiple reasons. But it's like I said: this is experimental and may be subject to change. Also, I'm going to give a bit of a WARNING, there is blood in this chapter. Nothing super graphic or anything, but it's there. So, that being said, here's chapter two.

When Chef finally got to the castle, she went straight to the kitchen, taking her sweet time. Opening her fanny pack, she grabbed both trolls by the hair and threw them each into a cage placed on the counter, slamming it closed. They let out groans of pain while rubbing their scalps tenderly. Daffodil sat up and took in the sight of the kitchen. The room was huge to her, being big enough the hold several Bergens, with her and Rosiepuff barely taking up any space. It was fairly dark, with the only light coming from a few weak bulbs and a window above the sink. The walls were brownish and unwelcoming surrounded with stone and metal features. There were cooking utensils and tools hanging about, the most prominent being a cabinet full of well sharpened knives. This felt more like a sinister torture lair than it did an actual kitchen. 

So this is where it happens Daffodil thought to herself. Being in the room where so many trolls had lost their lives created a mixture of nausea and terror deep down in her stomach. A chill ran up her spine as Chef brought her face close to the cage. 

“I do apologize for the inconvenience your highness, but it just so happens that I need a troll for the pre-Trollstice dinner that I’m preparing for King Gristle tonight,” she gave Daffodil a cruel grin, showing her unsettling crooked teeth, “and every king needs a queen.” Daffodil scooted away from Chef only for her back to hit the bars of the cage. 

“And what about my grandson?” A glaring Rosiepuff spat. 

Chef turned her gaze to the older troll, her grin not wavering. 

“He was already out and I saw an opportunity. After all, waste not want not.” 

Rosiepuff got so angry that without a second thought, she socked Chef right between the eyes causing her to stumble back a bit. Daffodil gaped with wide eyes at her friend’s boldness. Chef let out a low growl while holding the now sore spot on her face. She got close to the cage, her red eyes looking directly into Rosipuff’s green eyes. 

“You will die first,” she said through ground teeth. 

Rosiepuff stood her ground even after Chef went over to the cabinet, ignoring the pain in her fist. Despite her demeanor, Daffodil knew that she was just as scared as her. The older woman finally turned to the queen and the two shared a look of sombre unsureness as Chef casually rummaged through the kitchen. Rosiepuff crossed her arms and stared down at the floor while Daffodil pulled her legs into her chest. 

The queen didn’t even have to look at herself to know that her colors had faded considerably. Fresh tears stung the ducts in her eyes as she thought about Peppy and Poppy. She told Peppy that morning that she would see him later that afternoon. If she had known that she was going to end up here, she would have hugged him tighter, told him she loved him. If she’d known, she probably wouldn’t be there in the first place. Poppy hadn’t even been awake when she left the pod. She didn’t even get to hold her baby today. And now she couldn’t even say goodbye to them. 

This really is it, isn’t it? She thought, burying her face further into her arms. Her shoulders went in and out of convulsions as she fought her body’s need to sob.

 

After a while of sitting in agonizing silence, aside from Chef’s loud humming, Daffodil saw something move out of the corner of her eye. She turned and could’ve sworn that for a millisecond, she saw a flash of pink. Only a few seconds later, she saw a dark, pinkish, bulky creature with a spiked collar stalk its way into the kitchen and tensed. She noticed it as the King’s pet crocodile, Barnebis. What was that thing doing in the kitchen? It’s eyes wandered like it was searching for something. Her peripheral vision caught something again and this time she saw what it was. Daffodil’s breath got caught in her throat as she saw the figure hiding behind a large pipe.

Staring up at her with loving, brown eyes and a determined look on his face was Peppy. He put a finger over his mouth, signaling her to be quiet and she simply nodded as she continued staring in disbelief. She reached up and pulled at Rosiepuff’s sweater to get her attention. Rosiepuff had a similar reaction when she saw the King next to the pipe, but it turned to fear when she saw that crocodile heading his way. As it got closer, she saw no way that Peppy could escape the creature’s line of sight. She had to think fast. Rosiepuff pulled the rubber band from her hair, pulled it back, aimed and projected it right into the crocodile’s eye. The beast let out a painful growl, squeezing one eye shut, then turned to his offender, sneering angrily. 

Chef stopped humming when she heard the sound and turned just in time to see the croc launch itself at the cage, biting into it furiously. Rosiepuff pushed back the queen, who trembled at the sudden proximity of the beast, to protect her from its pointy teeth. Chef stormed over to Barnebis, grabbing him off the counter by the scruff of his neck with one hand and the cage in her other hand. 

“That’s not for you, you greedy mongrel!” she shouted, pulling them apart and breaking off the cage door in the process. 

The action made Rosiepuff fling out off the cage and onto the floor. She got up and ran, hoping he would chase her. And that’s just what he did as soon as he got out of Chef’s grip, running into the walls as he still had one eye shut. Daffodil felt shock of what just transpired but also relief as her friend ran out of the kitchen, knowing how fast she was. Chef let out a flustered yell then looked back at the Queen, who shrunk at the sudden attention. In no time, Chef grabbed Daffodil again by her hair, grabbed two extra cages from a nearby cabinet and locked Daffodil in one of them. 

“You stay right here, do you understand me?” 

She didn’t wait for a response and left the kitchen to chase down the escaped troll. When the pink troll could no longer hear footsteps, she looked down, but saw that Peppy was no longer by the pipe. 

“Peppy?” she called out. Two orange hands suddenly grabbed onto the edge of the countertop and soon King Peppy was in front of her. 

“Hello Daffodil,” he said warmly. 

“How did you-” 

“I’ll explain later,” he cut off. He reached into his hair, pulling out a paper clip, bent it up, and used it to pick the lock. A satisfactory click was heard and he opened the cage door. Daffodil instantly latched onto him and held him tightly.

“Oh Peppy,” she stammered, digging her face into his neck. “I-I was s-so-” 

Peppy held her and stroked her hair for a moment. 

“It’s okay Dilly. I’m here.” He pulled away and gave her a tender kiss on her forehead. “We have to go. Even Rosiepuff can’t outrun that thing for long.” Peppy grabbed her by the waist and hopped down from the counter. He checked the hallways then they ran out of the kitchen and into the hall.

 

Far down the halls, up one flight of stairs, Chef crept about looking for any sign of the plump purple troll. Her eyes carefully surveyed up and down the walls for any sign of movement. As soon as she turned the corner on the left, tripped over something and fell flat on her face. She looked back and saw Barnebis by her feet, shaking his head from the impact and in the process, shaking what appeared to be glitter off his face. Chef stood back up then hit the crocodile on its back with the metal cage that was still in her hand, causing him to yelp.

“Watch it you big lummox!” she started down the hall again. “Make yourself useful and find that troll!”

Barnebis growled spitefully at Chef as she left his sight before he started sniffing around for the troll he lost. Not too far from where he was high up on the wall turquoise hair peeked out from an empty candle holder as the aforementioned troll gazed down at the creeping reptile. It was only a few minutes ago that Rosiepuff had been running from the croc who, despite her efforts, had almost caught up to her. As she felt her energy decreasing, she retrieved a container of leftover glitter and threw the entirety of it into his eyes. While he was momentarily distracted, she used her hair to climb into a candle holder to hide.

On the wall across from her there was a wooden shelf underneath an assortment of paintings that was a few feet higher than where she was. She could get to it by way of the ceiling lamp, but didn’t want to chance the crocodile seeing her. Rosiepuff saw something moving and looked up to see Peppy and Daffodil coming from around a corner on her left, walking on the shelf. The three exchanged relieved smiles before looking down to see where Barnebis was. He was currently facing away from them, so Rosiepuff decided to make a move. She wrapped her now loose hair around the ceiling lamp, which was a bit difficult as her hair was a bit wilted and heavier, and swung over to her friends. Barnebis’ head snapped up as if hearing the movement. He turned around then looked upward to find the source. His beady eyes stopped at the area on the shelf that they were hiding. Peppy, Daffodil, and Rosiepuff held onto each other tightly as they leaned back to avoid his gaze. After almost a full minute of staring, he gave an indignant huff and walked off, going down another hallway path. They each let out a sigh of a relief. 

The trio continued down the shelf, heading for the window at the end of the hallway. When they reached the end of the hallway, Peppy wrapped his hair around them, then eased them down to the floor. As soon as he got himself down, they hurried to the green window with a wall lamp on each side. Rosiepuff started pushing it up from the bottom, it didn’t budge until Peppy helped her. After getting it high enough for all of them to fit through, they stuck their heads out to judge the height. They were at least 30 feet from the ground. That was no good. Even with all their hair combined they could only go down a little more than halfway.

“There,” Peppy stated pointing down. Directly beneath them was dumpster. It was definitely wide enough to fall into and it would save them about 6 feet. It may have not been the cleanest, but it was better than concrete.

“We can use the lamp’s arm to hold onto,” he said, demonstrating with his hair.

“Are you sure there’s not another way?” Rosiepuff asked, still unsure if it was secure enough.

“We can’t chance going around another way, Rosiepuff.”

As the two were talking, Daffodil begun to look around the hallway for anything useful, in case they fall. Further down, past a tall, marble bust of King Gristle, just barely sticking out from a corner was a small custodial cart. It must’ve been left there by the young scullery maid. She saw something on the edge of the cart and rushed over without another thought.

“Daffodil, what are you doing?” Rosiepuff whispered anxiously. Daffodil didn’t answer right away as she grabbed what she needed from the cart with both of her arms.

“We can use these,” Daffodil said as she held up two sizable cleaning sponges for them both to see. Peppy smiled at his wife’s sudden idea.

“Good thinking, now let’s-” 

Confused by his abrupt silence, Daffodil looked over the sponges to see Peppy and Rosiepuff with looks of terror on their faces. Before she could say anything, she felt a huff of warm breath on her back. She looked behind her to see Barnebis only a few inches away from her, glaring down at her, baring all of his teeth, letting out a particularly low growl, that made the fuzz on her body stand on end. She tried to run back to the window, but Barnebis grabbed her by the hair with his teeth. Sharp pain rippled through her scalp as she tried to pull away. Rosiepuff had just about enough with this reptile and was between him and Daffodil in seconds. She whipped her hair at his face multiple times as hard as she could. Barnebis winced at the repeated stinging sensation, but when the elder troll hit him once again in the eye, it seemed that he had enough of Rosiepuff as well. Letting go off Daffodil’s hair, he swiped hard at Rosiepuff, knocking her into the wall on the other side, head first. She fell to the floor with a thud, now unconscious.

“Rosiepuff!” Peppy and Daffodil shouted. Daffodil tried to go to her friend, but Barnebis yanked her down with his claw, pinning her to the floor by the back of her dress, grazing her back in the process. She hissed in pain then looked up to see him seething with one bruised eye shut tightly. He opened his jaw diving at her. Frozen with fear, all Daffodil could do was shut her eyes. The blow however never came and instead she felt hot breath and heard grunting sounds. She opened her eyes to see Peppy standing over her, holding Barnebis’ mouth open, his hands below the snout by the teeth and his hair pushing down the lower jaw.

“Daffodil move!” he shouted. She pulled at the back of her dress, trying to rip it from Barnebis’ long claws, but the position she was in was too awkward. With shaky hands, Daffodil reached into her hair, pulled out a pair of scissors, then cut through the cotton material. Scooted away a few inches, with half of her back now exposed, but couldn’t take her eyes off of the scene in front of her. Peppy continued to fight back against the creature’s strong jaw, but it seemed that he was unable to get away.

In an attempt to throw off Peppy’s hold on him, Barnebis shook his head erratically. In the process, he hit his head against pedestal of the King’s bust, stopping for a moment to wince before continuing. The impact made the statue wobble around a bit, catching Daffodil’s eye. At that moment she had an idea. She got up and ran to the pedestal, climbing up a quickly as she could. Daffodil got behind the bust and pushed it with all the strength her hair was capable of. It fell right on Barnebis’ head with a loud crash. 

Almost immediately after, Barnebis fell forward, unconscious. Daffodil felt a relieved until she heard a yell of pain from Peppy. She rushed off of the pedestal, not caring about the soreness in her scalp. When she got to the front of the limp crocodile, she let out a loud gasp and her heart sank into her stomach. Peppy was pressed into the floor by Barnebis’ teeth, which were now pierced deep into his back. She could see blood beginning to seep through his clothes.

Oh no. Oh no no no no no.

“Peppy?” she barely whispered, kneeling in front of him. 

Peppy grunted, lifting his head up to look at her. He tried to hide his agony, but his labored breathing betrayed him.

“Daffod-” his voice was cut off by a dry cough. As he coughed, specs of blood flew out of his mouth and onto the front of her dress.

“Oh Peppy,” Daffodil sobbed weakly.

“WHAT WAS THAT NOISE?!” Chef’s voice boomed from down the hall on the left. Daffodil froze again at the angry tone of her voice. Her faint footsteps were heard shortly after.

“Daffodil,” Peppy rasped out, “you have to go.”

Daffodil looked at him in horror, eyes practically out of their sockets, then shook her head.

“No, I’m not leaving without you,” she said firmly.

“There’s no time,” he said. He wrapped his hair around her and the sponge she was carrying and struggled through the pain to maneuver her quickly to the open window.

“What are you doing?! Peppy! No! Don’t!” she pleaded tearfully. 

“Just use your hair, you’ll be okay,” Peppy said giving her a weak smile before letting her go. As she fell from the window, she screamed his name, holding onto the sponge tightly.

Using the last of his strength, he pulled the still unconscious Rosiepuff from the other side, and hastefully tucked her underneath the custodial cart. His hair began to retract just as Chef came into sight. She looked down at the motionless reptile and the broken pieces of the bust.

“Stupid animal,” she cursed. Then she noticed the elongated pink hair and her eyes lit up when she saw who it belonged to.

“Well now, what’s this?” she asked, bending down and prying Barnebis’ teeth from the injured troll with ease. Peppy ground his teeth together as he felt her fingers press into his wounds.

“How did you get in here?” she asked.

Peppy did not respond to her. Perhaps out of pain, perhaps out of defiance, or perhaps even both. Chef didn’t seem to care either way.

“Well, you’re not exactly what I had in mind, but now that I think about it,” she brought him closer to her face, wearing an evil, satisfied smile, “the king of trolls really is a better fit for the king of the Bergens. Don’t you think so?”

And with that, Chef walked her way back to the kitchen, humming an upbeat tune to herself. Peppy didn’t even attempt to fight her. He knew what his fate would be the moment he heard her footsteps, so he just accepted it. He had no regrets, he protected Rosiepuff and Daffodil. His people would be safe as long as they went through with the plan. They would be free.

“Goodbye Dilly, goodbye Poppy,” King Peppy rasped under his breath, before gradually faded away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well that got dark. I know that Peppy dropping her out of the window seemed a bit extreme, but he wouldn't have done that if he didn't think she would survive. Okay, thank you for reading. Feel free to leave a comment. Hopefully I can get the next chapter finished sooner rather than later.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's chapter three. I didn't think that I would get this done so quickly, especially because of how long it is. So, here it is.  
> Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN TROLLS. IT IS OWNED BY DREAMWORKS.

Daffodil screamed her lungs out as she fell from the palace window, still clinging onto the thick sponge for dear life. What seemed before to be a long way down before was now much faster when her movement was forced by only gravity. Pushing through her panic, she stretched out her hair and was able to grab onto the edge of the dumpster, but it only slowed her down as she couldn't stabilize all of it in time. Daffodil fell directly into the dumpster and hit her temple on a hard piece of scrap, while the rest (majority) of her body was protected by the sponge underneath it. Her body went limp as she fell unconscious and onto one of the garbage bags facing upward.

 

Hours later, a small purple bergen who had pale pink hair and was no older than four, emerged from the backdoor of the castle. She was wearing a scullery maid uniform and dragging a trash bag on the ground.

“Scullery maid! Hurry up with that trash, you worthless thing! You have dishes to wash!”

The young bergen flinched at Chef’s voice, then let out a sad sigh, knowing that this was her in a good mood. As she made her way to the dumpster, she didn’t notice the rips forming in the bag from dragging it on the ground or the litter coming from it. When she tossed the bag over her head and into the dumpster, several bits of trash fell out of the bag and onto the ground, some of it even got in her hair. She bit back frustrated tears while hastily wiping the waste off her hair and rushing back into the castle.

Inside of the dumpster, the pink queen was still laying on her back. Her senses started to come back to her, but her body was hesitating to wake up. Then, remnants of some rotten food rolled down the walls of the dumpster and landed on her face. Her face scrunched up a bit from the sensation and she took a sharp intake of breath. The strong smell gave her the push she needed to wake up. Daffodil felt a smooth yet bulky texture beneath her as her limbs twitched from the sudden awakening. She tried to sit up, only to regret it immediately when she felt an aching pain in her forehead. The queen’s senses were quickly overwhelmed by the revolting smells around her and a mild ringing in her ear, making her unable to think straight. Her body felt nearly drained as she couldn’t properly move, so she remained where she was.

After ten agonizing minutes of discomfort, the ringing in her ear died down and Daffodil was finally able to think straight. Opening her eyes, she was met with mostly darkness, save for the light posts on the castle exterior. She wiped the filth off her forehead as she tried to remember how she ended up here. That’s when it all came back to her. Peppy, Rosiepuff, the three of them trying to escape Barnebis, and lastly, Peppy pushing her out of the window. That stopped her right there. _Peppy. Rosiepuff_. In her panicked state, she found the strength to move. She still felt weak, but was able to get up and grab onto the garbage bag closest to her. She forced herself to climb up the bag and continued to do so until she was at the top of the dumpster. The queen felt a pang in her heart when she saw just how dark it was. How long had she been out?

Not giving it another thought, Daffodil used her hair, which brought back some soreness in her head, to get out of the dumpster. She went as fast as she could with her weakened legs, but she didn’t get far when she tripped over something. Daffodil hit the ground, letting of a brief exclamation of pain. She felt what she had tripped over at her foot and looked back at it only to stiffen.

Underneath her foot, among a slew of garbage, was Peppy’s circular leaf crown.

Daffodil reached and grabbed the crown, bringing it close to make sure she wasn’t imagining it. Laying flaccidly within the crown were multiple strands of dark pink hair that was noticeably dulled in color. She felt her heart beat erratically and a lump form in her throat as her fingers brushed the strands. It felt dry and coarse, almost like straw. A troll’s hair normally only got this when they-

No, it wasn’t true. It couldn’t be.

Daffodil continued to deny this until she saw the stains of blood on her dress from Peppy. Her mind suddenly conjured the clear image of Peppy impaled by Barnebis and pinned to the floor, barely able to move. It hurt him just to try to talk. Chef was just down the hall and likely saw him. He wouldn’t have had the strength to escape Chef if he tried.

Her entire body went numb as cruel realization hit her.

Peppy was… he was...

She felt everything around her disappear as her body was stuck in a standstill. This only lasted for a few minutes, until a sickening feeling hit her like a boulder smashing directly into her stomach. Her entire body trembled mercilessly as she choked out heavy, ugly sobs accompanied by uncontrollable tears running down her face. It hurt so much. More than any pain she had ever felt in her entire life.

“NO!” she shouted out bitterly, grinding her fingers into the crown. She repeated this mentally over and over as she continued to suffer through the pain that now manifested itself physically.

This wasn’t supposed to happen. He said that it was going to be okay. They were all supposed to be safe.

“Peppy...” she softly cried out.

Daffodil quickly lost control of her emotions, not making any attempt to calm herself down. Her mental reflex to search for the positive went into survival mode, scouring the situation for anything salvageable, but any logic she had was being silenced by her severe pain, fear, guilt and anger. It only worsened when she remembered that Rosiepuff had been with him and was unconscious. Both of them tried to save her.

Daffodil’s mind and body became engulfed in melancholia. It spread from her head all the was down to her toes. Her heart felt so empty and heavy at the same time. She hated absolutely everything about it, but instead of trying to fight it, she just let it happen.

* * *

 

Treading slowly along the walls of the castle interior, was Rosiepuff with tousled hair and dried up blood on her temple. Earlier, she woke up to the strong smell of cleaning supplies. She felt a throbbing bump on her head and had a massive headache. When she found herself able to assess things, she quickly put together that she got separated from Peppy and Daffodil. After crawling from under the custodial cart, she saw Barnebis who, to her surprise and relief was knocked out. Her body felt weaker, but she had enough strength to move on her feet. She found that the functionality of her hair was limited due to her head injury, so she mostly walked along the castle floor.

Rosiepuff made her way through the castle, at a much slower pace than before, searching for any sight of her friends. She was forced to hide multiple times to avoid passing Bergen guards. It took a long time, but she finally made it down to the entrance level of the castle. There was another window that was cracked open to air out the recently mopped floor. Just as she was about to move again, she heard voices approaching. Her eyes frantically darted around the hall until she spotted a crevice in the wall. She quickly squeezed into it, remaining perfectly still. As the voices got closer she recognized them. Walking down the hallway perpendicular to the one she was in, side by side was none other than King Gristle himself and a much too happy sounding Chef.

“Splendid as always Chef,” King Gristle praised, “I do believe you’ve outdone yourself this time.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t say that your highness,” she responded with fake modesty.

“No, no, you most certainly have. I feel fantastic, like I’ll last through Trollstice.”

Rosiepuff’s eyes widened and she felt dread run through her body, knowing exactly what he was talking about. Before she even had time to think about this the king continued.

“I can’t believe you went out of your way to prepare a troll for me. And the King, no less.”

“But of course, your majesty, only the best for you.”

The continuation of their conversation went unheard by Rosiepuff as the king’s words sunk in. The troll couldn’t believe what she just heard. Peppy had been cooked by Chef and eaten by King Gristle. Rosiepuff held both her mouth and stomach as retching noises threatened to escape her throat. She felt like she was going to be sick. Her eyes quickly welled up with tears as sorrow for her departed king and friend crept in. Stubbornly, she choked down her nausea and bit back her sobs. _No, not here_ , she thought while taking deep breaths. She knew that Daffodil had to still be alive somewhere. If she got caught, then Peppy’s demise would be for nothing and she would _not_ let that happen. Rosiepuff waited until the voices were completely gone before moving out of the wall. She carefully walked around the damp floor and maneuvered herself through the opening of the window.

Once on the ground, Rosiepuff saw the dumpster on her right and knew that she was by the back castle entrance. She heard a faint sniffing noise coming from around the corner of the dumpster and followed it. At the front of the dumpster, she saw a troll with grayish hair laying face down on the ground, their only visible movement being the breathing motion of their back. The back of the troll’s dress was removed exposing a gray skin color with a few long scratches around the spine. Rosiepuff moved closer to get a better look at the troll.

“Excuse me,” she gently prodded. “Are you alright?”

The troll visibly flinched at her voice, ceasing any movement. Reluctantly, they looked up at Rosiepuff, becoming more visibly in the low light.

“Daffodil?” Rosiepuff gasped in disbelief, eyes widened.

“R-R-Rosiepuff?” Daffodil responded with an equal amount of disbelief.

They both stared at each other, staying still until Rosiepuff made the first move. She kneeled in front of Daffodil, grabbed her and gently pulled her up on her knees.

“You’re alive,” Daffodil breathed out, eyes beginning to moisten.

“Yes,” Rosiepuff said, taking a good, hard look at the queen. Her body was covered with bruises, she had visible scratches, her dress torn and tattered with blood stains, her exhausted eyes had red surrounding them, and there was a bump on her forehead.

“You’re...” Rosiepuff tried to say, eyeing her now gray appearance, unsure of how to approach the subject. It seemed that she didn’t need to as Daffodil knew what she was referring to.

“Peppy… he...” Daffodil said, holding onto the object in her hands even tighter.

Rosiepuff glanced down and saw that she was holding Peppy’s crown. Instantly, she understood. She brought her hand up and held the side of Daffodil’s face giving her a look that said ‘I know’. Daffodil, closed her eyes as she felt her tears weighing down the edges of her eyes. When Daffodil felt Rosiepuff’s arms wrap around her, she let the tears roll down her face. She subconsciously leaned into the older troll’s arms and sobbed silently. Rosiepuff suddenly had violent urges toward Chef for what she did to both of her friends, but pushed them out of her mind to comfort Daffodil.

After a short while, Rosiepuff pulled away a bit.

“We have to head back to the Troll Tree,” she said.

“I can’t,” Daffodil stated, starting to panic. “How am I going to explain?”

“Daffodil-” “I can't face them! Not right now!” Daffodil continued.

“Daffodil,” Rosiepuff said more sternly, grabbing her shaking hands and looking her directly in the eyes.

“You don’t have to explain anything. They’ll understand. And if they don’t, they’ll have to answer to me.”

Daffodil calmed down, still feeling unsure. Despite this, she knew that Rosiepuff was right.

“Poppy is waiting for you.”

Daffodil’s eyes widened as she realized that Poppy was at the Troll Tree and hadn’t seen her mother at all. Her baby needed her and she was irate with herself for not thinking about it until now. And Rosiepuff needed to get to Branch, who was probably still scared out of his mind for his grandmother. She nodded in agreement, stuffed Peppy’s crown into her hair, and got up on her feet, wobbling just a bit. Her legs were not quite stable yet so Rosiepuff got up and supported her with one of her arms. The two started on their way back to the Troll Tree, both silently contemplating what awaited.

It was around an hour later that they made it to the center of Bergen Town and saw the caged Troll Tree. The tree itself was visible due to some street lights that were close enough, but Daffodil and Rosiepuff saw some smaller lights at the base of the tree’s trunk. As they got closer, they heard voices and made out a few figures holding what appeared to be hair torches. When the trolls that were holding said torches finally saw them their initial expressions were shock, as few trolls taken from the tree had come back. When the two were within the grounds of the troll tree and squeezed through the bars, the awaiting trolls went to greet them, but stopped when they saw the state the two were in, especially Queen Daffodil. One of the trolls, who they both recognized as Diamond, went ahead of the other trolls and met them face-to-face.

“Queen Daffodil, Rosiepuff, thank goodness, are you two alright?” she asked, trying not to stare at the Queen’s change in color.

Daffodil looked down, unable to look the glitter troll in the eyes. She was far from alright, but couldn’t find it in her to say anything. Rosiepuff sensed her discomfort and answered for them.

“We’re certainly not unscathed, but we’re safe now,” she said.

“Where's King Peppy?” Diamond asked.

Daffodil’s heart clenched tightly and she nearly lost her ability to breathe. Rosiepuff herself took a took deep breath before answering her.

“He saved us,” Rosiepuff said, hoping that was enough.

Diamond seemed to understand as her face went from concerned to horrified. Her hand over her mouth and a muffled gasp was heard. Her eyes went glassy and landed on Queen Daffodil once again.

“Oh Queen Daffodil I am so sorry,” she said quietly.

Daffodil didn't respond, keeping her head down, trying to hold it together. Rosiepuff rubbed her friend's shoulder to help calm her down.

“Where's Branch?” Rosiepuff asked.

“Oh, h-he's still with Dr Plum.”

“Dr. Plum? What happened to him?”

“I'll show you,” Diamond said, heading to the ascending location of the tree.

They both followed, knowing that their injuries needed some tending to. Diamond told the other trolls to go back home and to not speak about what was just discussed, then led Rosiepuff and Daffodil to the infirmary pod.

When they got to the infirmary pod, Diamond knocked on the door. Dr. Plum opened it slightly, giving them all a surprised onceover. After recovering, she made eye contact with Rosiepuff and gestured to inside of the pod, opening the door a bit more. Rosiepuff braced herself before looking into the pod. However, it seemed for naught as the sight before her broke her heart instantly. Daffodil peeked in as well and almost gasped out loud. Branch was sitting on a cot with his head hung low, his hair completely black, his skin gray and his posture limp. On one side of Branch was Cooper, who leaned against him in hopes of comforting him. On his other side was Guy Diamond, a silver glitter troll and Diamond’s son, who had the gray troll in a full on hug. Branch didn’t appear to reciprocate but he wasn’t pulling away either. Rosiepuff didn’t even notice the tears in her eyes as she watched her sweet little grandson knowing he was going through so much pain.

Wiping the tears from her eyes, she silently told Dr. Plum to open the door. The doctor did this and as soon as Rosiepuff stepped in the trollings next to Branch looked up. They loosened their hold on Branch and gazed at the older troll as if she were a ghost. Guy Diamond was the first to snap out of it and nudged Branch’s shoulder.

“Uh Branch?” Guy Diamond coaxed. “I think you should see this.”

Branch didn’t say anything, but shook his head slightly.

“You should listen to your friend Branch,” Rosiepuff spoke up.

Branch’s entire body jumped at the sound of her voice, as if he was being brought back to earth. His neck nearly gave an audible snap at the speed that he looked up. He couldn’t believe his eyes as he stared in awe at his grandmother who had been taken away from him just hours ago, leaving him sure that he would never see her again.

“G-Grandma?” he choked out.

“It’s me angel,” Rosiepuff responded in a gentle voice, taking a few steps further.

“Grandma!” Branch exclaimed, hopping off the cot and running to his grandmother.

Predicting this action, Rosiepuff had knelt to the floor of the pod and opened her arms out. Branch jumped right in, hugging Rosiepuff as tightly as he could. As soon as he felt her arms close around him, he started to cry into her chest.

“That b-b-bergen took you Grandma,” he cried. “I thought you were...”

He couldn’t finish as he cried even harder. Rosiepuff kissed his head repeatedly, then held him even closer to her, her chin on top of his head.

“Shhh,” she soothed, slightly rocking him. “It’s alright angel, I’m here. Grandma’s right here.”

Daffodil stood by the door watching the touching scene before her. She truly was glad that Rosiepuff and Branch had been reunited, but felt a painful ache in her heart at her last words.

_“It’s okay Dilly. I’m here.”_

Daffodil closed her eyes grabbed the upper left fabric of her dress as if grabbing onto her own aching heart. Dr. Plum noticed this, gently grabbed Daffodil and led her inside the pod. They gingerly walked around Rosiepuff and Branch. Diamond finally stepped in the doorway, causing Guy Diamond to look away from the scene before him.

“Guy, Cooper, let’s go boys,” Diamond said.

Guy leaped off the cot dragging Cooper along with with him and the three left the pod. As Daffodil sat on the cot, Dr. Plum went to go get her a gown. Daffodil’s eyes widened as she saw Branch glowing as his skin steadily turned back to it’s teal color and his hair went back to royal blue. She smiled at this but felt another sharp ache in her heart, knowing that her own colors would not return so easily.

After Dr. Plum treated their injuries, they left the infirmary pod with bandages on their heads. Daffodil was wearing a plain kaftan dress that the doctor lent her and Rosiepuff’s hair was still loosened to avoid another headache. Rosiepuff walked Daffodil back to her pod along with Branch who held her hand in a vice grip. When they got to the royal pod, there was a muffled baby cry, that Daffodil knew was Poppy and another troll’s voice, presumingly trying to calm her down.

“Daffodil, are you sure you don’t want to stay with us tonight?” Rosiepuff asked.

“No, Rosiepuff, I need this,” Daffodil decided.

Rosiepuff wasn’t sure about this, but respected her decision. She wrapped Daffodil in a one armed hug, her other one still anchored by Branch, squeezing her tight.

“Get some rest tonight. We’ll go over everything first thing in the morning.”

“I will,” she replied.

“Goodnight Rosiepuff.”

“Goodnight Daffodil.”

The two separated and Branch waved goodbye to Queen Daffodil as he left with his grandmother, staring questionably at her now gray skin.

Daffodil pulled her keys out of her hair, opening the pod door reluctantly. As soon as the door opened, an purple haired troll turned to look at her. It was Tandy, standing over Poppy’s sky blue crib as the baby continued to cry. She had a neutral expression on her face as though she wasn’t surprised at the Queen’s appearance. Diamond must’ve informed her already, she thought, relieved. She bit her lip nervously at Tandy’s lack of speech.

“Queen Daffodil…I’m glad that you’re safe,” Tandy finally said.

Daffodil gave her a brief grateful smile.

“Thank you for watching Poppy Tandy,” she said. “I’ll take it from here.”

Tandy gave an understanding nod, then headed to the door. Before passing Daffodil, she stopped and put a hand on her shoulder, looking her in the eyes. The look that she had was sad, almost like she was recollecting wistfully over something.

“I’m sorry, truly I am,” she said in a pained voice. “I understand.”

With that, Tandy left the royal pod. Daffodil knew what Tandy was referring to and didn’t dwell on it for long. Tentatively, she walked over to the crib. When she looked into the crib, she saw her precious little Poppy crying her eyes out and kicking the blanket off of her with her tiny, onesie clad feet. Daffodil felt a pang of guilt, knowing that she only got like this when she was away from her parents for too long.

“Hey baby,” Daffodil said in a tired voice.

Poppy stopped crying at the sound of her mother’s voice and stared at Daffodil innocently, then tilted her head in confusion. Daffodil felt like she was going to tear up again. Her own daughter didn’t recognize her.

“It’s me Poppy, it’s Mama.”

This made Poppy even more confused as she blinked the tears out of her eyes.

“Mama?” she asked.

The corner of Daffodil’s mouth turned up at her daughter’s adorable voice.

“I know I don’t look my best right now, but Mama hasn’t had a very good day.”

Daffodil reached into the crib and pulled Poppy out. She was almost two years old now, but still so tiny. As Daffodil sat down on her bed, she sat Poppy her in her lap, then took the items out of her hair and placed them on the nightstand. Among those items was Peppy’s discarded crown.

“Dada?” Poppy questioned when she saw it. Daffodil froze, internally scolding herself for her carelessness. That feeling of guilt that she felt earlier came back tenfold. How could she explain to a toddler that her father was gone? She couldn’t even understand and wouldn't remember.

“Daddy… can’t be here right now baby,” Daffodil said, feeling another sick feeling in her gut.

The babe looked at her confused again.

“Mama will tell you later,” she said, putting on a fake smile and quickly moving the crown out of sight.

Knowing Poppy would not go to sleep so easily, Daffodil knew that she had to sing to her. She didn’t have it in her to sing anything particularly sweet at the moment, so she thought of another song that had a soft melody. It wasn’t the happiest song, but the lyrics would go over Poppy’s head. She held Poppy upright then took a deep breath before singing.

_Little child dry your crying eyes_

_How can I explain the fear you feel inside_

 

Poppy stared intently at Daffodil with her mouth agape and the freckles on her rosy cheeks sparkling, as if beguiled by her singing. Daffodil’s blue eyes met Poppy’s pink ones.

 

_'Cause you were born into this evil world_

_Where man is killing man and no one knows just why_

_What have we become just look what we have done_

_All that we destroyed you must build again_

_When the children cry let them know we tried_

_'Cause when the children sing then the new world begins_

 

Poppy’s eyelids started to get heavy and she gave a small yawn.

 

_Little child you must show the way_

_To a better day for all the young_

_'Cause you were born for all the world to see_

_That we all can live with love and peace_

_No more presidents and all the wars will end_

_One united world under God_

_When the children cry let them know we tried_

_'Cause when the children sing then the new world begins_

 

Poppy moved closer, grabbing onto Daffodil’s dress, leaning against her.

“Mama,” she murmured sleepily, snuggling into Daffodil’s torso.

Daffodil smiled fondly at the affection, then held her securely before continuing.

 

_What have we become just look what we have done_

_All that we destroyed you must build again_

_No more presidents and all the wars will end_

_One united world under God_

_When the children cry let them know we tried_

_When the children fight let them know it ain't right_

_When the children pray let them know the way_

_'Cause when the children sing then the new world begins_

 

Daffodil felt Poppy steadily breathing and looked down to confirm that she was finally asleep. She got up and walked over to the crib, carefully removing Poppy from her chest, and placing her in the crib. She gently ran the back of her fingers along the baby’s darker pink hair, smiling at her sleeping form. It wasn’t long before her smile faded. She trudged over to the bed , practically falling onto it. As she laid on her side, waiting for sleep to come to her, she stared at the empty space next to her with a blank expression. She felt unexpected tears roll down her face, but didn’t have the energy or motivation to care at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man, that was a depressing one to write. It's hard to write people grieving sometimes, so I think back to personal experiences that I've gone through and try to integrate that.  
> Also, when I think of Daffodil's singing voice, I imagine that she sounds like Idina Menzel. Her voice is strong but also pretty.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man, I think I'm living proof that writer's block exists. This took much longer than I intended. Oh well, here it is.   
> Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN TROLLS (2016). IT IS OWNED BY DREAMWORKS.

After spending a good chunk of the previous night trying to get Branch to fall asleep as he was understandably still shaken from before, Rosiepuff was still very tired when she woke up with deep bags under her eyes. As she got up and ready for the day, the events from yesterday played in her head. The pain, both physical and emotional, that she and Daffodil had endured was still fresh. It made her want to break down in tears, but she knew she couldn’t do that at the moment. There were more important things that needed to be taken care of. After she finished getting dressed, she saw that Branch was still sound asleep. She quickly went to the pod closest to her and was able to get her neighbor Maddy, who luckily was awake, to watch him while she was gone. Then, she went off to Queen Daffodil’s pod.

Inside the royal pod, Daffodil laid awake in her bed, staring at the ceiling with half lidded eyes. She had been like this for the past half hour or so. It seemed that after last night her tear ducts were worn out and her entire body felt numb aside from the lingering pain in her heart. She wasn’t sure when she had actually fallen asleep or how she even managed to. It wasn’t until she heard a knock on her door that she broke from her trance. Certain that it was Rosiepuff, she told her to come in.

The door opened and Rosiepuff came in, sitting on the bed next to Daffodil. Daffodil sat up enough to look her in the eyes. Rosiepuff felt her friend’s suffering as she looked into her pink eyes that were absent of their usual brightness. Their ears perked up when they heard voices of trolls that were leaving their pods. Daffodil’s hands began to shake with anxiety as she remembered what she had to do. Knowing that Daffodil wouldn’t be well enough to explain what happened in front of everyone, Rosiepuff decided to take it upon herself to do so.

“I’ll tell them,” she said in a understanding tone.

Daffodil gave Rosiepuff a look of deep appreciation. She reached into the drawer of her nightstand and pulled out a golden cowbell, handing it to her. Rosiepuff took it, then gave Daffodil a concerned onceover.

“I’ll come back afterwards for the meeting,” Rosiepuff said.

Daffodil nodded somewhat absently, looking down at her still shaking hands as Rosiepuff left the pod.

The repeated clanking of the cowbell sounded off throughout the Troll Tree, successfully getting the attention of all the trolls. They all gathered at the trunk of the tree and were all instantly confused when they saw Rosiepuff with the cowbell instead of King Peppy. Most of them sensed something was wrong when they saw her serious facial expression. When Rosiepuff was sure that everyone was there, except for the children, she took a deep breath and told them what happened the previous night.

Meanwhile, Daffodil was sitting on the floor, against the closed door of her pod. She heard almost every word that Rosiepuff was saying, her breath quickening as she progressed. As soon as she got to the part about Peppy, Daffodil felt her heart beat go wild. Daffodil put her shaking hands over her mouth to prevent herself from crying out. She could hear all of the trolls scared reactions loud and clear. All of them were either crying over Peppy’s death or about Trollstice being tomorrow. Rosiepuff, along with Diamond and Tandy could be heard trying to calm the crowd of trolls down and reassure them, but the attempts of the three did little to dilute the unrest of the trolls as they continued to grieve and fret. Daffodil couldn’t hold it in anymore and let out spasmodic sobs into her hands.

Why did this have to happen? Why?

Daffodil ceased her cries when she heard whimpering from the other side of the room. As it grew louder, she realized that she and possibly the noises from outside had woken up Poppy. Quickly, she got up to tend to her child. Poppy was squirming about irritably, not used to waking up to such a negative atmosphere. Daffodil took her out of the crib and held her to her chest, rocking her.

“Oh Poppy, Mama’s sorry,” she said.

Poppy calmed down some as she nestled into her mother. As Daffodil continued to comfort her daughter, her mind wandered to her people. They all had suffered so much loss for far too long. It needed to stop. She knew that they had to carry on with the plan, but without Peppy there with her, she feared that she couldn’t lead them properly.

Daffodil’s anxiety caused her to stiffen, making Poppy whine a bit in displeasure. The troubled queen uttered another quick apology before rocking her again. Staring down at her baby, she felt a reinforced sense of urgency alongside her fear.

Later on, when all the commotion had died down, Rosiepuff came back. After Daffodil gave a brief explanation of the plan, she sent Rosiepuff to alert the trolls that Peppy had recruited to report back to the Royal pod for the meeting as soon as possible while she got dressed. After going back and forth through the tree to find said trolls, Rosiepuff had to ask a few other trolls to watch the children in her absence.

By the time she returned to the Royal Pod, Daffodil was fully dressed and had brewed some coffee. Rosiepuff sat down on the bed, feeling dizzy. Daffodil offered her friend some coffee, which she accepted. They ate some mixed fruit for breakfast as they waited for the other trolls. Daffodil had allowed Poppy to eat independently, which resulted in a small mess, not that either of them minded.

When the group of trolls did show up to the Royal Pod, quite a few of them were taken back by her gray appearance, but got over it quickly. The trolls called to the meeting were Tandy Sparkledust, the fuzzlings, and a group of miner trolls.

Rosiepuff remained seated next to Daffodil, cleaning off Poppy’s face and hands.

“Thank you all for being here this morning,” Daffodil said.

“I’m assuming that you all heard the announcement this morning.”

They each gave quick responses of confirmation and condolences.

“I know about the root tunnels and I plan to commence with the escape,” she explained. “I need you all to go over the details of the plan with me.”

The miner trolls and fuzzlings wasted no time taking out the blueprints of the tunnels as Tandy explained how they were assembled. They had spent the past few months digging the tunnels, testing the durability and stability of every one of them. It was high enough that their hair wouldn't detrude and wide enough that they could move quickly. Tandy had collected enough hair for dozens of torches just in case it got dark. Also, she and some other crafts trolls managed to create a wooden troll decoy for every single pod on the Troll Tree.

After every aspect of the plan was gone over, Daffodil felt some reassurance. She sincerely thanked them all for their hard work and dedication before leading them all out to the base of the Troll Tree.

Queen Daffodil used the cowbell to once again call the trolls back outside, feeling anxiety build up in her stomach. Rosiepuff stood near her, holding Poppy who was staring longingly at the instrument. The trolls all came once again, slower and unsure. When they got close enough to see the currently gray Queen Daffodil, they either gaped in awe or muttered in concern. The queen felt very uncomfortable and somewhat vexed. Nonetheless, she took a deep breath and spoke to her people. Daffodil explained the plan, careful not to mention Peppy in front of Poppy. It felt surreal, like an out of body experience. She could hear herself speaking but didn’t feel like she was controlling her voice. Hopefully the other trolls couldn’t tell how out of it she was.

Having a thorough understanding of how they would escape, the trolls seemed mostly relieved and even optimistic, but there was still a lingering unease. Queen Daffodil ordered them to pack whatever they could fit into their hair and prepare to leave early in the morning. With that, they all dispersed and went to their respective pods.

Once back inside her pod, Daffodil went through her belongings. She decided on a couple of her dresses and a few essential items. Then came the hard part as she faced Peppy’s belongings. Daffodil honestly didn’t think she could leave anything of his behind. It felt like she was somehow abandoning part of him. But she knew that there was only so much that she could carry in her hair over long periods of time. After a while of thinking, she packed the few things that she chose, removing the rest from her sight.

The only thing that she left out was one of Peppy’s capes. Daffodil trailed her fingers gingerly along the freshly washed material, finding satisfaction in the lack of wear or stains. Before she knew it, she had taken her husband’s garment and wrapped it around her shoulders. It was of course too big for her, but she sunk right into it, feeling warmer and safer than she had felt all night. As Daffodil pulled it closer, she caught the faintest scent of Peppy. That nearly made tears return to her eyes. The queen jumped slightly when she felt something on her feet and looked down to see Poppy. The tiny pink trolling sat down on her mother’s feet, staring up at her very confused.

“Mama ‘kay?” Daffodil took a deep breath, then picked up Poppy, setting her on her lap.

“Yes, Mama’s okay,” she said, forcing a smile. “I’ll feel better when we get out of here, all of us.”

Her mind suddenly recalled the saying that Peppy had indoctrinated many years ago.

_No troll left behind._

“No troll left behind,” Daffodil said aloud, as if to reinforce it with herself.

Poppy suddenly brightened up, recognizing her father’s phrase of encouragement.

“No twoll leff behine!” the trolling excitedly mimicked to the best of her ability.

Daffodil couldn’t help the genuine smile that stretched onto her face. She pulled Poppy in closer, embracing her affectionately, temporarily distracted from her fears.

“That’s right baby,” she encouraged. “That’s right.”

 

The rest of the day had gone by without too much complication. By the time the sun set, all of the trolls had their things packed. Most of them went to bed earlier to prepare for the next morning. Daffodil fed Poppy, washed her and put her to bed, but remained awake. Sometime after the street lights came on, she heard a soft knocking on her door.

“It’s me Daffodil,” Rosiepuff spoke gently.

Daffodil once again gave her permission to come in. Rosiepuff walked into the pod wearing a nightgown, carrying a couple of pillows and comforters. Daffodil gave her a confused look as she layered the comforters on the floor, followed by the pillows. She reached into her hair which was still recovering from yesterday, carefully pulling out a sleeping Branch and laid him down on the pallet.

“We’re staying here tonight,” the older troll said firmly.

Instead of disagreeing with her as the night before, Daffodil nodded. To be honest, she was kind of relieved.

“You can sleep on the bed if you want Rosiepuff,” she offered.

“I can’t,” Rosiepuff declined politely. “Branch will get restless.”

The queen looked down at the little troll, feeling empathetic towards him. She knew that he was still feeling distraught. _Poor thing._

“Were there any Bergens near the tree?” she asked, curious.

“Some, but they left before sunset.”

A few moments of silence passed before Daffodil spoke again.

“Was… Chef out there?”

“No,” she answered with clear resentment in her voice.

“Good,” Daffodil said, not wanting to talk about the malicious Bergen any further.

Rosiepuff finished securely tucking Branch in, then looked up to see Daffodil staring off into space.

“What are you thinking about?”

“Everything,” she responded bluntly.

“Anything in particular?” the older troll asked, sitting next to her once more.

“Tomorrow,” she said.

Rosiepuff waited for her to continue.

“I’m trying not to think about it, but,” she felt her pulse accelerate, “… I’m scared Rosiepuff.”

“It’s not just you Daffodil,” she responded as sensitive as she could. “We’re all terrified, but we have to leave now or we’ll be stuck here forever.”

“I know but... I’m not ready for this, not without...” she stopped herself, feeling like she was seconds away from crying.

Rosiepuff’s face softened into an expression of sad understanding.

“I know it’s hard Daffodil. Believe me, I know that more than anyone, but you have to do this.”

Daffodil knew that Rosiepuff was right, but that didn’t help how she was feeling. The emotions that she had managed to suppress all day were threatening to break the surface.

“I need him,” her voice came out shakily. To her ever growing dismay, her hands began to shake again. Rosiepuff immediately pulled Daffodil into her arms for a much needed hug. She was hugging her so tight that it felt like her bones were bending.

“You’re not alone,” Rosiepuff told her in a firm voice. “ _Please_ don’t think that you are.”

Daffodil didn’t respond to her, but leaned into her, closing her eyes and taking deep, slow breaths. It wasn’t until her shaking finally subsided that Rosiepuff pulled away from her.

“I never thought the day would actually come for us to leave,” Daffodil said.

“Neither did I,” Rosiepuff admitted.

“I can’t really remember a time that I haven’t been here,” she recalled. “Will you miss the Troll Tree?”

It wasn’t a foolish question. Even knowing and witnessing the horrors of Trollstice, no troll could ever bring themselves to hold contempt for the tree that had always provided for them.

“Of course I will, but it’s a small price to pay if no one has to suffer like all the trolls that we’ve lost did.”

“Or like us,” Daffodil said under her breath.

“Exactly, and I hate to put this on you, but they need you right now,” she said. “Don’t forget that you’re still their Queen.”

Daffodil finally opened her eyes, looking at Rosiepuff. She was absolutely right. No matter what she was feeling, all of the trolls were looking to her now, counting on her. She looked down at Branch, then over at Poppy through the bars of her crib. They deserved to grow up in an environment where they would be safe, where they could walk around without the hungry eyes of those horrible Bergens watching them. Daffodil wasn’t going to let her own fears ruin the chance of that. Her sense of urgency from before came back tenfold and she looked Rosiepuff in the eye.

“We’re going to get the hell out of Bergen Town,” she said with determination, to which Rosiepuff simply smiled and nodded.

 

Every troll woke on Trollstice morning before the break of dawn. They all knew that Trollstice was the only day that the Bergens didn’t sleep in, so they couldn’t risk leaving any later. Most of them remained in their pods until Queen Daffodil ordered them otherwise. The miner trolls went to keep watch of the passageway to the root tunnels while Tandy and company went from pod to pod placing a wooden troll doll in each one. Meanwhile, Queen Daffodil and Rosiepuff were in the Royal pod preparing themselves and the children. After all four of them had washed and dressed, the two women made sure that they had everything they packed and settled into their hair. Daffodil wore her usual dress, but had tied Peppy’s cape around her collar. Rosiepuff grabbed Branch’s hand and Daffodil cradled a tired Poppy to her chest.

“Ready?” Rosiepuff asked, turning to Daffodil.

“As ready as I’ll ever be,” she answered.

They left the Royal pod and as they walked along the branch, Daffodil looked back one last time at what had been her and Peppy’s home for years before looking away with downcast eyes.

By the time they made it to the center of the tree, where the branches met, the sun had already began the rise. Shortly, Tandy arrived with her daughter and confirmed that every pod had been prepared. Daffodil handed Poppy to Rosiepuff and set off the cowbell once more. The trolls all came out and gathered around the queen, anxious to get going. After a thorough hair count, the miner trolls moved a giant leaf aside to reveal a big hole in the center of the tree. Many gasps were heard in the crowd followed by cautious shushing. Queen Daffodil had Tandy stay at the front to guide them, as she knew the tunnels best, while she made sure that every troll got into the tunnel.

It took a while to get every troll with their families in the tunnels and just as they were down to the last few trolls, they heard a noise from outside the caged tree. It was the sound of excited Bergens getting up for Trollstice. The trolls sped up, practically falling into the hole. Branch held onto his grandmother in fear while his eyes darted nervously around the tree. Rosiepuff handed Poppy back to Daffodil, grabbed her and Branch, then lowered them down into the hole with her hair. The second they landed in the tunnel, they ran like the wind, barely taking in the underground environment surrounding them.

Daffodil securely held Poppy closer to her as they ventured deeper into the tunnel. Poppy was now fully awake, giggling with excitement over what she thought was just a ride. There were many twists and meanders, but the trolls kept going. They were a little more than halfway when Daffodil’s name was called. She slowed down and turned to see Diamond come up to her, holding her son’s hand.

“Some of the others can’t keep up!” she exclaimed.

Daffodil looked behind her to see the trolls in question lingering further back, a couple of them appeared to have fallen.

“No troll left behind,” she softly proclaimed, tucking Poppy safely into her hair then running back.

She helped the trolls off the ground, encouraging them to keep going, pairing them with other trolls if they couldn’t run as fast. Then she helped a mother untangle her child’s hair from a protruding root, lifting the root out of the way with her hair afterwards. She continued to help in any way she could, receiving a quick thank you from each troll. Lastly, there was a troll with a visibly broken leg. She held him up to stand on his good leg and ran beside him, putting his arm around her shoulder for support. Just as they were catching up with the others, something penetrated deeply into the ground right in front of them. Startled yells were heard from the other side of what appeared to be a shovel. Daffodil felt her heart skip a few beats.

_They found out._

A few moments later, the shovel went back above the surface. The other trolls called Daffodil, bringing her back. She hopped over the the dent, running on pure adrenaline. The trolls continued to run for their lives, not daring to look back, listening to the sounds of persistent shovels hitting the ground. They narrowly miss each blow into the ground, growing more scared by the second.

At some point, the group of trolls furthest from the end of the tunnel formed a defense mechanism referred to as a hug ball. Fortunately, Daffodil was able to run while pushing the trolls, mainly with her hair. She heard the disturbing sounds behind her getting closer and closer. A shovel suddenly came down aggressively pinning Daffodil by the cape. She jerked backwards then struggled to pull the cape from under it. Just then, she saw the tunnel roof in front of them begin to cave in. In a split second, Daffodil’s hair pushed the compacted trolls as hard as possible pass the incoming shovel, hopefully a safe distance away. As she desperately continued to pull at the cape, an idea came to her and she reached into her hair.

The ball of trolls collapsed as they exited through the end of the tunnel, followed by a cloud of dust. All of the other trolls backed up, searching the group of trolls for any sign of the queen. The purple troll with the broken leg hobbled over to the tunnel, peering in. He looked back to them with a sad face.

“I don’t think Queen Daffodil made it,” he said.

Some of the trolls gasped in horror while others fought the urge to cry. Rosiepuff however wasn’t having any of that as she stepped out of the crowd.

“I'm going back,” Rosiepuff said, heading to the tunnel.

“No Grandma!” Branch exclaimed, holding onto her tightly.

“Branch, I’ll be right back, stay here,” she said, trying to gently pry him off of her leg.

Branch wouldn’t budge, but it appeared he didn’t need to as frantic steps were heard coming from the tunnel. They all looked with anticipation at the entrance. Emerging somewhat clumsily from the cloud of dust, was a mildly scratched up Queen Daffodil holding a pair of scissors in her hand. Every troll cheered triumphantly at the Queen arriving with them safely. Rosiepuff rushed forward, taking Branch with her, and embraced her friend.

“Oh thank goodness,” Rosiepuff said.

“No troll left behind, remember?” Daffodil responded, putting away her scissors.

“Where’s Poppy?” she asked, pulling away.

“She’s safe,” Daffodil said, opening up her hair, pulling the curious trolling out.

“No twoll leff behine!” she shouted happily.

“Awww!” the trolls all cooed in unison.

“We’ll all be safer once we get far away from Bergen Town, let’s go,” Daffodil ordered.

The trolls all headed into the forest, hoping that whatever awaited them was infinitely better than what they had been through and hopefully would lead them somewhere they could be free

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so happy to be finished with this chapter. Now I can move onto the next one. Thanks for reading! Feel free to comment.

**Author's Note:**

> Well, that's the first chapter. Hopefully it won't take too long for me to finish the second chapter. Thanks for reading.


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